An urn for your pet, in Perth
By our estimate, about 695,000 households in Perth share their home with a dog or cat, and roughly 58,000 of those pets die each year. Many of their ashes come home needing an urn. Here's how to choose one well.
- No rush: ashes are safe as they are
- Written proofs before engraving
- Help splitting ashes fairly
Perth, Western Australia
Where families in Perth find their urns
Paw print impressions, nose prints and fur clippings are worth asking for before cremation, because they cannot be made afterwards. Many Perth families collect a clay paw print at the vet clinic or at home, then add a framed photo or a small engraved urn later. If relatives live in the eastern states or overseas, which is common here, a few matching keepsake urns or pieces of cremation jewellery lets everyone keep a share close.
The Indian Ocean and the Swan River are the landscapes many Perth families think of first for ashes. A water-soluble urn is made for a quiet release from a beach or a boat, and it avoids ash blowing back in the afternoon sea breeze that arrives on most summer days. If you would like to keep part of the ashes, ask for a small keepsake urn or a pendant as well.
Space is the quiet constraint in Perth. Plenty of households here keep the urn inside a bookcase, on a windowsill or in a wall niche rather than on a mantelpiece. Measure the height between shelves before you buy: a tall vase-style urn that looks elegant online may not clear a standard shelf, while a low box or a round urn tucks in easily.
With roughly 2,092,000 residents, Perth is the largest of the 2 Western Australia communities we cover.
Nearby, we also have local pages for Bunbury (96 miles), which can help if your vet or the provider you prefer is based there.
Our estimate
695,000
Estimated dog- or cat-owning households in Perth
How we calculated this
2,092,000 ÷ 2.5 = 836,800 households; × 49% (dog) + 34% (cat) = 695,000. Multi-pet homes count once.
Our estimate
58,000
Estimated dog and cat losses in Perth each year
How we calculated this
695,000 dog/cat-owning homes ÷ average lifespan (dog: 12.69 yrs + cat: 11.18 yrs) ≈ 58,000 a year. The real figure is unlikely to be lower.
49%[1]
49% of Australian households have at least one dog, up from 40% in 2019.
12.69 years[2]
US dogs have an average life expectancy at birth of 12.69 years.
34%[3]
34% of Australian households have at least one cat, up from 27% in 2019.
11.18 years[4]
US cats seen at Banfield hospitals have an average life expectancy at birth of 11.18 years.
To check the figures yourself, see Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science and Animal Medicines Australia, Pets in Australia 2025 (media release).
Keeping ashes at home: the local attitude
With cremation at roughly 71%[5] in Australia, many families here have already scattered a relative somewhere meaningful. That experience often shapes what they do for a pet: part of the ashes kept indoors, the rest returned to a beach, a trail or a garden. If that's your plan, buy the urn after the scattering, so it's sized for what's left.
FuneralSmart (2023) is where the Australia figure comes from. It counts people; we use it because attitudes to cremating a pet in Perth tend to follow attitudes to cremation generally.
Indoor and outdoor urns in Perth's climate
Local weather also affects deliveries. Storms, extreme heat and holiday rushes can all add days to an urn's journey, and fragile ceramic or glass travels best in mild weather. If a date matters, order early and ask the seller for the making time and shipping time separately. Your provider in Perth can tell you what they'd recommend at this time of year.
Budgeting for an urn and keepsakes in Perth
Australian pet crematories often sell urns and timber boxes directly. One Brisbane provider lists them from A$95–A$200[6], from a white ceramic urn to a carved wooden cat, and metal urns at A$170–A$245[7] depending on how they're engraved; laser engraving takes about two weeks[7]. Prices in Perth will vary, but that's a fair picture of what a crematory counter charges.
The full price table by product is on our Western Australia page, and the services page explains what each option includes.
Free tool
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
Before you scatter or bury in Western Australia
Keeping a pet's ashes at home in an urn is allowed almost everywhere, and you don't need anyone's permission. The rules come in when the ashes leave the house: scattering in public places, burying an urn in a garden or sending ashes by post. Here's the basic picture for Western Australia.
In Australia, pet urns are usually sized in litres, and many crematories sell urns and timber boxes directly alongside their cremation service. Delivery to regional areas can take noticeably longer than to capital cities, so allow extra time for engraved pieces. Scattering on private land needs the owner's permission, and national parks and beaches often have their own rules.
Home burial and scattering are governed at the Western Australia level first; our Western Australia rules summary has the detail. Then check whether Perth or your HOA adds anything.
From temporary container to urn
- Decide whether each pet gets its own urn in its own style, or whether a coordinated set, added to as time passes, appeals more.
- Pick a design that will still be made later, ideally one a nearby craftsperson could reproduce, if future urns need to match.
- Size each urn for one pet; buying a companion urn for two is best left until you actually have both sets of ashes.
- Label the base of every urn, naming who it holds and when, whatever is engraved on the front, so there's no confusion later.
- Leave shelf space beside the first urn so a later one can join it without rearranging the room.
- File each crematory certificate with its urn, in an envelope taped underneath or kept together in a drawer.
Keeping your pet close in Perth
Plenty of Perth owners have a garden to work with, which makes a memorial stone, a planted tree or a scattering spot at home a natural choice. Because the coastal soil is sandy and summers are dry, pick a hardy native plant or a drought-tolerant shrub for a tree urn or memorial planting, and choose a stone or plaque that can take strong UV without fading. A shaded corner near a favourite resting spot tends to feel right.
browse in-depth guides or recent articles, try the free planning tools, or look at how readers voted in our polls, Our services overview lays out every option side by side. If you live between Perth and Bunbury, either page applies. Every other community in Western Australia, and all of Australia, is listed too.
Reader polls
What would you choose?
Vote anonymously and see how other readers answered. The results are live counts from people who visit this site, so they show real opinions, not a scientific sample.
Will your pet's ashes stay together or be shared?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Where does (or will) your pet's urn live?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
If you had to decide today, which aftercare would you choose for your pet?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Free tools to help you plan
Memorial budget planner
Add up cremation, urn, keepsakes and a farewell so the total holds no surprises.
Urn size calculator
Find the urn volume you need from your pet's weight, plus keepsake and sharing options.
Ashes sharing planner
Split ashes fairly between family members, keepsake urns and jewelry.
Questions people ask
Roughly how many pets die in Perth each year?
Our estimate is around 58,000. It comes from Perth's population (about 2,092,000), the average household size, the share of homes with a dog or cat (about 695,000 households here) and the average lifespan. It is arithmetic, not a count, so read it as a rough floor.
Is cremation common in Australia?
For people, yes: about 71%[5] of Australia deaths end in cremation, according to FuneralSmart (2023). Nobody publishes the same figure for pets, but in our experience pet choices in Perth follow the human pattern closely, so cremation is the default most families here start from.
Can two pets share one urn?
Yes. Companion urns are made to hold two sets of ashes, sometimes in separate compartments. Many families prefer matching single urns instead, because pets rarely die at the same time and a companion urn can sit half empty for years. If you do choose a shared urn, size it for both pets' combined weight.
Do I have to buy an urn right away?
No. After a private cremation, the ashes come back in a sealed temporary container, usually a bag inside a box or tin, and they're safe in it indefinitely. Many families in Perth wait a few weeks, or even months, before choosing an urn. Waiting often leads to a better choice, because the first days after a loss aren't the easiest time for design decisions.
What size urn do I need in litres?
Urns in Australia and New Zealand are often sized in litres. Allow about one cubic inch per pound of body weight, and remember that one litre is about 61 cubic inches. That puts a typical cat under half a litre and a 30 kg dog at roughly 1.1 litres. The urn size calculator gives both units.
Is there someone to talk to about losing a pet in Australia?
Yes. In Australia, Griefline covers pet loss and lists its helpline as 1300 845 745[9], open on weekdays. Many vet clinics and pet crematoria in New Zealand and Australia also keep a list of local counsellors. Choosing an urn is often easier once you've had a chance to talk about what happened.
Sources and our estimates
- [1] 49% of Australian households have at least one dog, up from 40% in 2019. Animal Medicines Australia, Pets in Australia 2025 (media release), 2025.
- [2] US dogs have an average life expectancy at birth of 12.69 years. Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science - Banfield Pet Hospital life expectancy tables (13.3 million dogs, 2.4 million cats, 2013-2019), 2023.
- [3] 34% of Australian households have at least one cat, up from 27% in 2019. Animal Medicines Australia, Pets in Australia 2025 (media release), 2025.
- [4] US cats seen at Banfield hospitals have an average life expectancy at birth of 11.18 years. Montoya et al. 2023, Frontiers in Veterinary Science - Banfield Pet Hospital life expectancy tables (13.3 million dogs, 2.4 million cats, 2013-2019), 2023.
- [5] Australian cremation rates hovered around 70-72% between 2020 and 2023, with Sydney and Melbourne often above 80%. FuneralSmart, 2023.
- [6] Brisbane pet crematory Patch & Purr sells pet urns and timber boxes from A$95 (white ceramic) to A$200 (carved wooden cat). Patch & Purr Pet Cremations – Urns & timber boxes, 2026.
- [7] Patch & Purr's metal urns cost A$170 with an engraved disc, A$185–A$195 with an engraved stand, or A$245 laser-engraved, which takes about 2 weeks. Patch & Purr Pet Cremations – Urns & timber boxes, 2026.
- [8] At a $50 average, engraving is about half the price of a typical $98 wooden pet urn from a crematory catalog. Our estimate: $50 (average engraving) / $98 (Final Gift typical wood urn). How we calculate.
- [9] Griefline, an Australian grief support service that covers pet loss, lists its helpline as 1300 845 745, open weekdays 10am–8pm AEST/AEDT. Griefline – Losing a pet, 2026.
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